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Madison County vs. Salem (Region Playoff Game)
Madison County Pulls Away From Winder in Fourth Quarter
by BEN MUNRO
It wasn’t a perfect night from Madison County Friday, but it didn’t have to be. No, the Raiders will hope for that this weekend in the region playoffs.
With only Winder-Barrow blocking Madison County’s path to a week 10 date in 8-AAAA’s one-week postseason, the Raiders (5-4,3-3) knocked the visiting Bulldoggs out of the way, turning a close game into a breather with two touchdowns in the last 4:40 to put Winder-Barrow (4-5, 1-5) away, 27-6, over the weekend.
“We really needed it,” Senior Raider Running Back, Cello Latimer said of the win. “I really can’t say much about it. I’m just proud of everybody.”
Al Allen scored a touchdown from four yards out with four a half minutes left then returned an interception 81 yards to slam the door on a three-game winning streak to close the regular season schedule.
It was Madison County’s second consecutive win over the Bulldoggs.
The Raiders kept the game plan conservative in the first half in taking a 13-6 lead into the locker room, throwing just one pass and racking up 150 yards on the ground. Madison County spread out the offense in the second half, but didn’t find the end zone again until late when it put together a six-play, 54-yard drive, culminating with Allen’s four-yard touchdown.
Allen’s interception and 81-yard jaunt then set off the long awaited celebration of Madison’s County’s claiming of the fourth and final spot in the region playoffs.
“It was a terrific effort,” said Latimer, who scored the first touchdown of the game. “We gave everything we could and came out victorious.”
And a big victory it was.
Since falling 33-9 to Habersham Central on October 5, Madison County has risen from last place to 8-A-AAAA to being a win away from a third-straight trip to the state playoffs as the program’s preseason goals are still intact.
“We were pretty dejected after that,” said senior placekicker Jack Orr of the team’s slow 0-3 start in subregion. “But we just said we’ve got to do our thing and take care of business.”
Which Madison County did once again against a struggling Winder-Barrow outfit.
The Raiders jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the second quarter, following a one-yard Latimer touchdown and a 20-yard field goal from Orr. Winder-Barrow cut the lead to 10-6 briefly before Spencer Baird connected with Allen for a 40-yard completion. Madison County’s only pass of the first half—to set up another Orr field goal, then one from 33 yards.
The game settled into a defensive struggle for most the second half, but the Raiders, who picked up six sacks in the game, only allowed the Bulldoggs to cross midfield twice in the final two quarters.
The Raiders assured themselves of finishing at least .500 for a eighth-straight year with Friday’s win.
Raiders Relish Shot to Play for State Playoffs
by Ben Munro
Never mind all the business about the Raiders being a fourth seed Friday. All Madison County wanted was the chance to be here and see what happens.
Well, “here,” would be the Region 8-AAAA playoffs.
The Raiders are one win — albeit one huge win — from getting back to the playoffs for a school-record third-straight year.
Thanks to a 27-6 win over Winder-Barrow Friday, Madison County (5-4, 3-3) meets top seed Salem (8-1, 6-0) Friday on the road at 7:30 p.m. one year after upsetting the Seminoles in the region playoffs.
“I love it,” said senior placekicker Jack Orr, who kicked the game-winner in last year’s wild 47-44 win. “It gives us a chance to redeem ourselves and show that last year wasn’t a fluke.”
On paper, the odds appear stacked against Madison County, which won three straight games to put itself in this position. Salem, winners of eight in a row, hasn’t lost a region game all year and is coming off a 28-10 dismantling of previously-unbeaten Cedar Shoals. The Seminoles, who won region championships in 2004 and 2005, are 8-AAAA’s winningest team the past four seasons with a 37-8 record.
However, Madison County, after an 0-3 start in subregion play, is still standing after nine weeks of football and playing a meaningful game 10, unlike the five teams who missed the region playoffs and are relegated to playing meaningless contests to finish out their seasons.
“We’re really excited about it,’ Raider head coach Randell Owens said. ‘It (getting to the region playoffs) has been something we’ve been working for a month to do.”
Even when the going got tough, the Raiders said they knew they could turn their season around by winning its last three sub-region games.
“I never doubted us,” senior running back Cello Latimer said. “I knew we could get it done. It’s really a great thing.”
So, despite being a four seed and facing a long road trip, the Raiders relish Friday’s opportunity.
“It means a lot to me,” Latimer said. “We’ve just got to execute and do our thing. We need another one like last year.”
For the Raider seniors — who have won 26 games in their careers — they get the chance to maintain the standard they’ve helped set the previous three seasons. Their résumé includes three straight winning seasons and two trips to the state playoffs — both of which are annual program marks under Owens.
A win over Salem Friday would extend those streaks another year.
Though Madison County would have to topple a no. 1 seed to do it, the opportunity is there. Orr said he and his fellow seniors have waited a long time — some since MCYA youth football he noted — to play for this program and enjoy moments like these.
“It means a lot to us,” Orr said. “All of us seniors have worked hard for four years.”
Salem
2004: 13-1
2005: 9-3
2006: 7-3
2007: 8-1
Last four years: 37-8
MCHS-Salem series
2004: Salem 36, Madison Co. 7
2005: Salem 28, Maidson Co. 24
2006: Madison Co. 47, Salem 44
Could This Be Another Classic Raider Friday?
by Ben Munro
Madison County is a win away from going back to state a school-record third-straight year. But it’s going to take one of those special nights the Raiders have been so apt at dialing up over the past four seasons.
Perhaps the first of these classic Raider evenings was Madison County’s 8-7 win over Clarke Central back in 2004, which seemed to provide the fuel injection for the Madison County program under Randell Owens.
Since then, we’ve seen the Raiders roll the dice, pull off rallies and slug it out with the region’s best for some golden gridiron moments, giving us thrillers and tear-jerkers too.
Due to hefty losses to graduation last year, these 2007 Raiders aren’t Owens’ best team.
Prior to this year, Madison County hadn’t lost more than two games in a row under Owens. This year, Madison County slogged through a four-game cold spell were it was beaten by a combined 117-54 and left as region road kill.
But starting with a 15-14 victory over Loganville, which was ignited by a 93-yard touchdown off a gadget play (the play of the season to this point), these Raiders have circled the wagons, won the games they had to and saved a season.
Now, this group has the chance to add its own chapter to Madison County’s new football legacy and reach the altitude the last two Madison County teams did — the state playoffs.
A win over top-seed Salem from the other side of the region would certainly have the credentials to go down as a Raider classic.
So as Madison County strives towards its next great moment, let’s take look at what we believe are the top five biggest wins so far in the Owens’ era. Of course, they’re also the top victories for a senior class, which came in as freshmen during Owens’ first season.
5. Madison County 21, Clarke Central 20 (2005) — Lightning strikes twice. The Raiders delivered an encore of their 2004 win over the Gladiators by rallying from 20 points down to stun Clarke Central. MCHS would win again in 2006.
4. Madison County 47, Salem 44 (2006) — Madison County out-gunned defending region champion Salem in a 91-point shoot-out as the Raiders proved the 2005 season was no fluke, wrapping up an eight-win regular season with a trip to the state playoffs.
3. Madison County 8, Clarke Central 7 (2004) — This is the game where Madison County showed that things were going to be different around here, scoring a late touchdown and two-point conversion to sink the defending 8-AAAA champion Glads.
2. Madison County 27, Cedar Shoals 14 (2005) — Raider quarterback Jarrod Owens torched the Jaguars for over 300 yards in the Raiders’ first-ever win over Cedar Shoals. Madison County — though not until after full-scale region debate — clinched its first playoff berth in 22 years. Head coach Randell Owens gathered his team around midfield after the win over the Jags and pointed to the scoreboard to remind his Raiders of what they’d done.
1. Madison County 23, Loganville 20 (2005) — Not really a victory over a high-caliber opponent, but this wasn’t really even about football. There was never a more heartfelt win from Owens’ guys and not a dry eye in the house when the Raiders pulled out a double overtime win one night after the school lost beloved cheerleader Jodi Torres in an automobile accident. Madison County played with a sense of purpose in the second half that hasn’t been forgotten.
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